The Funding Year 2012 Form 471 filing window is officially open and applicants can now begin submitting applications for the upcoming funding year.

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The Funding Year 2012 Form 471 filing window is officially open and applicants can now begin submitting applications for the upcoming funding year. The FY2012 filing window will be open for 72 days, closing at 11:59 p.m. Eastern on Tuesday, March 20, 2012.

In November, 2011, John Harrington, CEO of Funds For Learning, penned an open letter to FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski requesting that the commission increase the available funding in the E-rate program. Funds For Learning invites E-rate stakeholders and supporters to sign the online petition before it is delivered to the FCC in 2012.

In addition to the petition, Funds For Learning offers filing window tools and assistance for schools and libraries, such as E-rate Manager for Applicants, a web-based tool that helps schools and libraries secure technology funding through the E-rate program.

The Funding Year 2014 Form 471 filing window will officially open at noon EST on Thursday, Jan. 9, 2014, and will close at 11:59 pm EDT on Wednesday, March 26, 2014. The filing window, during which schools and libraries can apply for E-rate funding, will be open for 77 days. Participating in its 17th filing window, Funds For Learning, the nation’s largest E-rate compliance firm, helps applicants across the nation benefit from technologies supported by E- rate funds. The company has been an active participant in E-rate reform processes, most recently presenting the FCC with recommendations for updating the landmark funding program.

Requests for discounts on certain communications services increased for the fourth straight year as schools and libraries across the nation requested more than $5 billion in E-rate funds for Funding Year 2012.

According to analysis by Funds For Learning, the next 15 days of the Funding Year 2011 E-rate filing window should be very busy. An estimated 19.5 percent of applicants file the Form 471 within 20 days of the close of the filing window.